CVE-2021-47482 | net: batman-adv: fix error handling

In the Linux kernel, the following vulnerability has been resolved: net: batman-adv: fix error handling Syzbot reported ODEBUG warning in batadv_nc_mesh_free(). The problem was in wrong error handling in batadv_mesh_init(). Before this patch batadv_mesh_init() was calling batadv_mesh_free() in case of any batadv_*_init() calls failure. This approach may work well, when there is some kind of indicator, which can tell which parts of batadv are initialized; but there isn't any. All written above lead to cleaning up uninitialized fields. Even if we hide ODEBUG warning by initializing bat_priv->nc.work, syzbot was able to hit GPF in batadv_nc_purge_paths(), because hash pointer in still NULL. [1] To fix these bugs we can unwind batadv_*_init() calls one by one. It is good approach for 2 reasons: 1) It fixes bugs on error handling path 2) It improves the performance, since we won't call unneeded batadv_*_free() functions. So, this patch makes all batadv_*_init() clean up all allocated memory before returning with an error to no call correspoing batadv_*_free() and open-codes batadv_mesh_free() with proper order to avoid touching uninitialized fields.

Published: 2024-05-22 Last update: 2025-04-02 Assigner: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67 Source: 416baaa9-dc9f-4396-8d5f-8c081fb06d67

Conclusion & alert: CVE-2021-47482 is rated Low Risk (32.7/100): CVSS Medium severity, with low exploitation likelihood (EPSS 0.14%). Mandatory action: Monitor for updates and reassess as exploit intelligence or EPSS changes.

Risk is dynamic; we continuously reassess and refresh what is shown on this page as upstream context changes.

Exploit prediction scoring system (EPSS) score for CVE-2021-47482

EPSS lead: Daily EPSS estimates relative likelihood of exploitation; percentile ranks this CVE among scored vulnerabilities (higher = more severe relative rank).

# Date Old EPSS score New EPSS score Delta (New - Old)
1 2025-11-21 1.01% 0.14% -0.87%
2 2025-11-18 0.08% 1.01% +0.93%
3 2025-06-30 0.08%

Full EPSS history (9 records total)

Common vulnerability scoring system (CVSS) metrics for CVE-2021-47482

CVSS metrics for this CVE.

Base score Version Severity Vector Exploitability Impact Score source
5.3 3.1 MEDIUM
CVSS:3.1/AV:N/AC:H/PR:L/UI:N/S:U/C:N/I:N/A:H Click to expand
Attack vector (AV:N)
Could be attacked over the internet or any normal routed network—not just someone sitting at the machine.
Attack complexity (AC:H)
Even with access, the exploit needs extra luck, timing, or a fussy environment to actually work.
Privileges required (PR:L)
A normal user session is enough; they don’t have to be admin.
User interaction (UI:N)
Nobody has to click “OK” or open a trap file; it can work without a victim helping.
Scope (S:U)
Damage stays in the same “trust bubble” as the broken component—no big spill into unrelated systems.
Confidentiality (C:N)
Doesn’t really leak secrets in a meaningful way.
Integrity (I:N)
Data isn’t meaningfully altered or forged.
Availability (A:H)
Could take the service down hard or make it unusable for people who depend on it.
1.6 3.6 134c704f-9b21-4f2e-91b3-4a467353bcc0

Weakness enumeration for CVE-2021-47482

OS Trackers for CVE-2021-47482

vendor priority summary link
debian not yet assigned CVE-2021-47482 not yet assigned priority: Debian including 1 source packages (linux), 5 status rows across 5 suites (bookworm, bullseye, forky, sid, trixie): resolved 5. https://security-tracker.debian.org/tracker/CVE-2021-47482
redhat low https://access.redhat.com/security/cve/CVE-2021-47482
suse low CVE-2021-47482 severity low: SUSE including 445 source package names (15.5.17.2:kernel-default-devel-5.14.21-150500.55.68.1, 15.5.17.2:kernel-devel-5.14.21-150500.55.68.1, …), 956 product×package rows across 209 product lines (Container bci/bci-sle15-kernel-module-devel, Container suse/sle-micro-rancher/5.2, … (209 product lines)): Fixed 700, Known Affected 205, Known Not Affected 51. https://www.suse.com/security/cve/CVE-2021-47482/
ubuntu medium CVE-2021-47482 medium priority: Ubuntu including 160 source packages (linux, linux-allwinner-5.19, …), 1686 status rows across 11 suites (bionic, focal, jammy, mantic, noble, oracular, plucky, questing, trusty, upstream, xenial): DNE 1267, not-affected 147, released 140, ignored 128, needed 4. https://ubuntu.com/security/CVE-2021-47482

Affected software / configurations for CVE-2021-47482

Vendor Product Version Raw CPE
linux linux_kernel >= 2.6.38, < 4.4.293 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel >= 4.5, < 4.9.289 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel >= 4.10, < 4.14.254 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel >= 4.15, < 4.19.215 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel >= 4.20, < 5.4.157 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel >= 5.5, < 5.10.77 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel >= 5.11, < 5.14.16 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:*:*:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 5.15 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:5.15:rc1:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 5.15 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:5.15:rc2:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 5.15 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:5.15:rc3:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 5.15 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:5.15:rc4:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 5.15 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:5.15:rc5:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 5.15 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:5.15:rc6:*:*:*:*:*:*
linux linux_kernel 5.15 cpe:2.3:o:linux:linux_kernel:5.15:rc7:*:*:*:*:*:*

References for CVE-2021-47482

cvelogic Threat Intelligence